If National wins ...

[elZorro]

Belg, just wondering whether you just shot yourself into the political foot ...

Propose you google "David Cunliffe lies". After doing some research on the 247,000 hits you might reflect on David Cunliffe's apology for being a man. Not saying that this was one of his lies, but then ... was this really a sincere apology, given that according to your definition he can't be a real men (if real men do what they say, I suppose they don't lie)? So how is David better than John?

Confused - what do you really want to tell us about David Cunliffe?

Discl: Yes, I don't particularly like David Cunliffe, but I am not very fond of John Key either. But above all - is there any chance we could have some political discussion with a bit more substance?

Yes, we could talk about policies BP. How about that.

[BlackPeter]

Yes, we could talk about policies BP. How about that.

Sure, lets talk about the stuff which is relevant to New Zealanders. So how would all our life's improve if we happen to get a Green / Labour / Mana / Internet party coalition or alternatively a Green / Labour / Winston First coalition (given that Winston says he won't go into bed with racists ... and hey, if Winston says that it must be true?). Inspire me ...

[slimwin]

There most certainly is abused men Belg. To the point of poisoning them even.

[elZorro]

Sure, lets talk about the stuff which is relevant to New Zealanders. So how would all our lives improve if we happen to get a Green / Labour / Mana / Internet party coalition or alternatively a Green / Labour / Winston First coalition (given that Winston says he won't go into bed with racists ... and hey, if Winston says that it must be true?). Inspire me ...

OK, I prefer the second coalition, mainly because it would be more acceptable, and get up and running quicker. At least these parties all know about the mechanism of being in the hot seat.

Labour would immediately bring in $15 an hour minimum adult wage, students would be on less of course, and I don't think they'll make that mistake again, a lot of junior staff got the flick, and lost their chances of job experience. That just highlights a relatively unfriendly employer environment, and shows that worker rights do need to be protected somewhat.

This extra money sloshing around will help retailers, even landlords. A portion will be added to the tax coffers, of course the tax rates for the well-off will rise a small amount on the very top of their earnings (no, that won't kill your take-home pay BP) and a CGT will start to make people think about what investments they have a go at.

At the same time R&D tax credits and a more even-handed scheme for business investment will help expose businesses as a better investment, and of course Labour and the Greens have great ideas for improving the existing housing stock and building new ones, with KiwiBuild. This will kickstart a new wave of building trade training and investment. On a big scale, and it won't cost the taxpayer anything. This will cool down the housing market in Auckland, making rents there more equitable, and buying first homes easier for many.

The Greens will be working on their swimmable waterways policy, and again that will be smart long-term strategy for a country which was the last significant settled land area in the world, and we have a lot to protect.

The govt budget will be in surplus quickly, we'll have more job-rich exports, probably more SOE activity, more employment, more prospects. Everyone wins.

[fungus pudding]

OK, I prefer the second coalition, mainly because it would be more acceptable, and get up and running quicker. At least these parties all know about the mechanism of being in the hot seat.

Labour would immediately bring in $15 an hour minimum adult wage, students would be on less of course, and I don't think they'll make that mistake again, a lot of junior staff got the flick, and lost their chances of job experience. That just highlights a relatively unfriendly employer environment, and shows that worker rights do need to be protected somewhat.

This extra money sloshing around will help retailers, even landlords. A portion will be added to the tax coffers, of course the tax rates for the well-off will rise a small amount on the very top of their earnings (no, that won't kill your take-home pay BP) and a CGT will start to make people think about what investments they have a go at.

That extra money sloshing around will drive up prices, or businesses will fail. That's okay for those who benefit from inflation, e.g. highly geared investors in shares, property etc. Certainly will not help the lower paid. Like so many govt. economic theories, it will achieve the opposite of what is intended.
What other investments will investors think of when there are no exemptions apart from the primary residence? Oh golly gosh - I just answered my own question.

[Banksie]

That extra money sloshing around will drive up prices, or businesses will fail. That's okay for those who benefit from inflation, e.g. highly geared investors in shares, property etc. Certainly will not help the lower paid. Like so many govt. economic theories, it will achieve the opposite of what is intended.
What other investments will investors think of when there are no exemptions apart from the primary residence? Oh golly gosh - I just answered my own question.

Surely the extra money will only drive up prices if there is a shortage of supply. This could be a problem in the housing sector, but should be balanced out with the Kiwibuild program.

I have lived through a CGT implementation, and you know what, the world didn't end and wealth was not destroyed . Because of the aversion to CGT in NZ I agree with initially excluding the primary residence, but eventually it should be included as well. If every cent I earn comes from selling my time why should I be taxed on every dollar, while someone making money from an appreciating asset is not?

[elZorro]

That extra money sloshing around will drive up prices, or businesses will fail. That's okay for those who benefit from inflation, e.g. highly geared investors in shares, property etc. Certainly will not help the lower paid. Like so many govt. economic theories, it will achieve the opposite of what is intended.
What other investments will investors think of when there are no exemptions apart from the primary residence? Oh golly gosh - I just answered my own question.

FP, here is the Labour policy on CGT, which I'm sure you've already had a look at.

https://www.labour.org.nz/sites/defa...uly%202011.pdf

You're right, there is no limit on the amount you can spend on the family home at the moment, not that I saw on a quick look. Also exempt is the boat, antiques etc, but not the bach, other land or buildings beside the family home. Commonsense will limit the spending on the family home, there's only so much the nearby market can stand. Having said that, our housing stock is in a moderately bad way overall. It needs some investment, and that'll create more jobs and training. BTW, all new houses now have to have double glazing in the windows/panels, and it's not much dearer than standard windows. Cuts down on noise, increases insulation, great. Who brought in that smart policy? Labour, 2007, 2008.

http://www.dbh.govt.nz/codewords-24-5

But you have assumed that there is no elasticity in retail prices, and that higher wages for the few lowest paid staff would cause higher prices. Surely a business only needs enough volume to generate enough profit, to pay for expenses and leave a return. So higher volume would allow this, without price increases. Shops already discount by well over 50% on RRP for some items, so they're trying it now for market share, with a dwindling spare income available. Extra fuel and housing costs have taken the cream already. A business that has something special to offer, won't be worried by any changes to minimum wage. Their staff will already be well above it.

FP, Labour increased the size of the NZ economy last time they were in, they had clear and strong budget surpluses, the GDP/capita went up, it worked. You're wrong if you think it won't work again.

[slimwin]

What's percentage got to do with it Belg? Some people are more guilty than others huh. Just like some socialists are more equal than the others.

[fungus pudding]

Think we agreed previously that you views on CGT isn't supported by anyone but yourself?

You do not know my view on GST.

[fungus pudding]

You'll need to explain how you arrived at those five assertions.

I do not need to do anything at all. I'm quite happy as I am.